Under-five

An under-five, also known as, an under-5, or a (U/5): is an SAG-AFTRA contract term for an American television or film actor whose character has fewer than five lines of dialogue.

Under-five work

Under-Five work is regarded as both desirable and undesirable. Getting an under-five can be a stepping stone to bigger roles. Some however, see it as mere grunt work or beneath their standing as an actor. Prior to the SAG-AFTRA merger, it used to be that actors performing under-fives in the capacity of a recurring character, as a member of AFTRA, and after one year's time, became eligible for Screen Actors Guild (SAG) membership. Once a backdoor for getting the difficult-to-obtain SAG card, now comes automatically with lines performed on an Under-Five contract.

AFTRA pay-rate rules

According to AFTRA union rules a speaking part exceeding five lines in a day triggers a substantial rise in pay. To remain an under-five the total number of words in the five lines or less must be below 50. Under-five roles have therefore been an integral consideration in script development, especially in regards to episodic budgeting.